BP4_MindMeister when you have thoughts to share

MindMeister is mind-mapping software that helps you organize and share ideas, concepts and information, by putting them in context. We have a few ideas on how this app can help our family track what we learn, organize our research and collaborate better with each other.

But first we better describe the different options you might try.

Iden's daily travel journal template is under construction.

Create Your Own

Create a thought pattern style map using a key word, phrase or statement. This one I set up as a template for my son, Iden, to use as his daily journal base for our upcoming cruise. You’ll see in a minute why I would choose this program for my 6 year old, who is just learning to read and write.

Make visual connections

I also created a template for my son Aren, who is currently blogging for our site AwayIsHome.come as well as his own Aren World of Science. Gotta keep him busy!

In research, there are often overlaps. For example on his Barcelona research we connect Barcelona’s famous architect, Guidi to his famous buildings in Places to See and will also end up adding a connection to the map of the area where the building stands.

Aren is working on his Barcelona, Spain research with Mom and Dad.

Aren will use MindMeister Maps to collect and organize his research for both sites. And I am hoping we will be able to merge the sites later and have a master of his resources and create a movie about his summer online. 

Insert pictures, links and documents, oh, my!

You can also see in Aren’s Barcelona research we have active links to some map sites, an image of the building by Guidi. And in Guidi’s node we have attached a document that is a biography about the architect. You can view the document without leaving MindMeister too.

Work it out together

I’d like to bring it back to Iden, my 6 year old.  He’s a visual learner, but he is also very kinesthetic. Wants to touch and move stuff.  Hard to do with ideas. But in MindMeister he can make connections and move items by drag and drop from one node to another. Just a mouse click, drag and drop. And it is very visual. See how we added icons to visually identify each parent node.

People have shared their mind maps
on a wide variety of subjects.

Better yet, we can share the file with each other online and work together, even if I am away on business or he is visiting his grandparents. We can even share with Grandma and Grandpa, just giving them viewing privileges for now.

We plan to use the collaborative feature as part of our planning research with our Internet audience at awayishome.com.

Borrow from another

There is also an area where you can give access to your mind maps to everyone at MindMeister, or borrow someone else’s work and build on it yourself.

What do you think?

Maybe you have some ideas on how to use the collaborative features on MindMeister, or other applications. We’d love to know!  Leave a comment to get the conversation rolling. We might even give it a try too.

PE3_iMovie

Kari finished training in iMovie 11!

I think I am a fan of Lynda.com

as a form of instruction.  It was mere curiosity when I first logged in with my special membership code and was overwhelmed with the vast selection of topics.

In particular there were two items I always wanted to improve upon. Guess what? They were listed! Photography and Illustrator were now within reach. So I did some sneaky peeking until it became obvious I had to get cracking on my actual class assignments.

But it didn’t stop there, oh no! I wasn’t in the iMovie 11 tutorial for half an hour before they started dangling other programs that can be used with iMovie or imported to augment my projects.

So I took the bait. No, not right away like a trout. No, I waited.

My curiosity knows no bounds and Lynda.com knows it.

See I had already gotten started on a few other areas of study and new I had to finish what I started. So the minute I finished the last training video for iMovie, still flush with a sense of accomplishment and pride, I dove into iWeb, iDVD and GarageBand.

I haven't finish photography or Illustrator, yet.

And "dove" might not be the right term. More like sticking my pinky toe in to see how the water felt.

Strictly welcome and introduction videos.

I am definitely plunging with GarageBand.  Or maybe iWeb.

Crap. Who am I fooling? I have to go with iDVD so I can share my videos and pictures with my parents, who are digitally challenged and prefer DVD over YouTube.

But first, I am off to finish creating my fantastic iMovie experience on MindMeister, which I will post on this blog tomorrow.

If you have any tips, tricks or resources that relate to iMovie, please do not hesitate to share them in the comments below!

PE2_iMovie

I am using Lynda.com to learn iMovie.

Help me. I am drowning in two-minute video snip-its. My mind is numb and my eyes glazed over.

When will it end?

What? I’ve only gotten as far as how to import in iMovie 11. And I am 30 minutes in. How many freaking ways can it be done?

Forget I asked. Every stinking camera, digital file and hard drive is covered.

But that’s a good thing. Right?

My training is taking FOREVER!

Yes, that was me about 3 hours ago. And I wasn't really 30 minutes in, only about 20.

Needless to say, I had to make some changes. Quick.

As a result, I now have some important Lynda.com training video viewing techniques that will help you improve your retention, comprehension and attitude toward learning. Check it out.

Tip #1. I know you want to finish quick, but limit yourself to 2-3 videos followed with a break. Go get a glass of water. Try five squats. Do 15 jumping jacks. Who knows you can lose weight while you learn! Just don’t expect to sit through these straight across. Your mind can’t handle it, and the way they break the videos into bite sizes is somewhat hypnotic – at least it was to me.

Tip #2. I know you have a mind like a steel trap, and your brain is incredibly talented. Give your eyes a break! This is especially true if you are viewing using the iPad app. The backlit screen in a dark room will cause pain, pain that is subtle but will keep you from comprehending what you are viewing on the screen. So after 10 – 15 minutes, put the device down and look around your room. Blink a few times. Bend over and let the blood flow to your face. This was very helpful to me.

These tips really helped
me move through the material. I am
confident I will finish in time.

Tip #3. Try it once you’ve watched it. They give you exercise folders for a reason. I had to go back and re-watch some sections because, even though it is really simple to use, I couldn’t remember how to change things from universal to individual. Doh!!

Tip #4. Don’t try to share mental bandwidth with other devices/programs while training. Yes, I tried to answer a text and send an email during a “boring part.” If it’s boring, it is probably important or they wouldn’t have included it. For the most part these guys are bright, charming and snarky. I like that.

Let’s hope I can make it to the end without losing too much knowledge and skill.

If you have any tips for keeping alert through training videos, please share them in the comments below and get the conversation started.

PE1_iMovie

I am looking forward to the next hour of iMovie training on Lynda.com. I downloaded the app so I can watch along on my iPad and do the practical on the computer without having to toggle too much!

iMovie: At the very start of it all! Photo by Aren Elliott.

I have actually learned quite a bit about Lynda. For example, don't watch video without signing in or you will not get credit for the views.

Download the accompanying files in advance to save the wait later on.

Don't share your account info with your honey or he may go rogue and try to learn something too.

I had already made a good dent in iMovie 9, which is on my older computer but was never used.

My son Aren and I had some fun with old footage that we never had any use for before. When you can add text and pictures to the film and move it on the page, animate it, that is power.

Final Cut is my main movie editor, but I am looking forward to being able to do more with iMovie 11. See, I never really learned how to use all the options in Final Cut, and after just two hours with iMovie 9 I could do credits! That is a big deal for me.

Plus it is nice to use an editor that my son can use as well. Though he is going to film camp next week. I wonder what they’ll be using there?

Well I guess it is lights, camera, action for me! On with the iMovie.

BP6_My friend Lisa's resume is ready thanks to JobSpice

My friend Lisa is looking for a new job, but she has a secret weapon. It's a Web 2.0 tool that helps you write and format your resume, and it only takes a few clicks!

The site is JobSpice.com and it really is pretty simple to use. After I read Lisa's review, I went and gave it a try. Below you'll find what I was able to finish in just a few minutes before running out to pick up the kids.

JobSpice.com: From zero to resume in just a few minutes.

You can see a review of this powerful free software on Lisa's blog. You'll find my comments by clicking here.

If you've tried JobSpice or another resume writing tool, let me know in the comments below.

BP5_Greg Haven is using Aviary's Myna for free. You could too!

I just read a great blog post by Greg Haven of Mr. Haven's Web 2.0 Tools Discovery Blog. He's using Aviary's Myna audio editing tool, and I think I will too!

See my comment on how I plan to keep my son's school friends close through the summer separation using Myna or maybe Roc music creator at the core. I'll post later this summer to let you know how it goes.

Click here to hear my recording of this post!

Blog Comment.egg on Aviary.

Mr. Haven is a fourth grade teacher in Modesto California, and I think you'll want to follow his blog if you're looking for creative ways to incorporate Web 2.0 tools in the learning process for your students.

Way to go Greg!

If you use Aviary, let me know which tools and how it helps you share knowledge with others. Go ahead and leave your comment below!

BP2_Gogobot

Over the next year I plan on visiting quite a few places with my kids.

Erysse, Aren and Iden Elliott. Photo by C. Elliott.

We’re hoping at least 12 states for two to four weeks at a time crisscrossing the US by car.  And somehow we’re going to get work done while homeschooling and discovering the similarities and differences between our hometown and where we visit.

No pressure.

Yeah. I know for sure that I cannot do this alone. It will likely take more than the five of us working together. So I have been looking for social networks dedicated to destinations and travel, and I think I finally found the right one.

Florida landing page on Gogobot.

Mind you, when we travel we’ll be visiting areas near relatives and old college buddies as well as no man lands in between. We’d like to plan the trips in one place but get input from everyone and anyone with some knowledge of the area.

Enter Gogobot.com.

Like other travel focused sites and booking engines, Gogobot connects me with reviews, activities, pictures and videos about areas I am interested in visiting. It will also help me reserve a room or find flights from my area to the destination.  I can share these reservations with friends, too.

There is a built in booking feature at Gogobot.

Nothing new there.

And similar to sites like Yelp.com and TripAdvisor.com I can sound off about places I’ve visited and experiences of interest. I can rate them, share pictures and video as well.

But I can also track the many places I’ve already been through the “Passport” feature and find others who have been to similar places. Plan upcoming trips, allowing friends and family to make suggestions. Or use the feature that puts me in touch with area experts. I can even follow-up with folks who post reviews in case I have other questions.

And this is all done without leaving the site.

Incentives include user point ranking.

They have incentives for contributing, not that they need them. Like Yelp and Trip Advisor, you’d be surprised by how many people want to write up the details of their trips and share them with others.

Actually, you can “follow” others which at first sounds a little creepy, but this option is very RSS/Twitter like where you pretty much are kept up to date on what they’ve posted.

I set up my account using my twitter log in, but you can use Facebook too.  It takes a few seconds, then you are prompted to fill your passport with destinations you have visited. You can go into the destination find things you did and rate or write them up, add pictures or video and see what others have said.

You can give or ask for advice.

Because we’re planning trips, I skipped this and went to destinations I know to see what kind of coverage they have. 

I’ve actually written a guidebook on Orlando and am a contributor for a snow-sports guidebook. As suspected, popular destinations had more variety and depth. Winter Springs was lacking. So was Clearwater.

So I invoked the Get Advice feature. The funny thing is this feature allows me to post a question on what is like a bulletin board or help desk. I cannot speak to its effectiveness yet. But I will follow up here when I can.

The clincher for me was the way they handle suggestions. This group is constantly updating, upgrading and integrating suggestions by users. You can vote with a +1 if you like the suggestion made and you can see what ideas have been integrated.

Site uses GetSatisfaction to manage suggestions.

User generated content is nothing new, it is the collaborative, organizational and planning tools that will be most helpful for me as we face the long road ahead.